Interpersonal Communication

Communication, as the term is used in your text, consists only of messages that a sender deliberately conveys.

False

An older professor who forgets what it was like to be a student when he teaches is an example of how differing environments in the classroom can make understanding difficult.

True

When people communicate, they are often both senders and receivers of messages at the same time.

True

We are not communicating when we remain silent.

False

“Decoding” is the process whereby

we make sense out of the messages sent by others.

Some of the characteristics that make relationships more interpersonal than impersonal are

uniqueness, irreplaceability, and interdependence.

The authors describe some of the social needs we strive to fulfill by communicating as

control and affection.

When you pay attention to your behavior in relationships, you are

self-monitoring.

Noise in the communication process is

any force that interferes with effective communication.

Internet users have more social networks than non-users.

True

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is important to the study of interpersonal communication because

communication is usually necessary to meet each level of need.

What health threats can result from a lack of close relationships?

More susceptible to the common cold and more likely to die prematurely.

Relational dimensions of a message

make statements about how the parties feel toward one another.

Of the communication models described in your text, the linear model most accurately describes the interpersonal communication process.

False

Socially isolated people are much more likely to die prematurely than those with strong social ties.

True

Which of the following is most clearly an example of interpersonal communication?

Royce asks Jane about her sick child.

It is impossible to repeat the same communication event.

True

All of the following elements are included in the transactional communication model introduced in Chapter One except

sender

Your text argues that it is important to react in unique ways to every person we meet and respond to each as a unique individual.

False

Getting others to behave in ways that we want is considered what type of goal?

Instrumental

The self-concept is extremely resistant to change.

True

In the example of schoolchildren taken from the book Pygmalion in the Classroom

the children teachers predicted would do better, did so.

The kind of person you believe yourself to be is called the

perceived self.

When Joe hangs his framed medical degrees on his office wall he is managing his identity through

setting.

It is possible to have a more favorable image of yourself than the objective facts or the opinions of others warrant.

True

A competent communicator is able to call on different identities when necessary.

True

Opinions of family members or teachers early in your life have little impact on the formation of your self-concept.

False

Psyching yourself up before a soccer game is an example of

self-imposed prophecy.

The term “self-concept” refers to

the total of an individual’s beliefs about his/her physical characteristics, intelligence, aptitudes, and social skills.

According to your text, “ego-boosters and busters” are

people or words that influence the self-concept positively or negatively.

Popular TV shows featuring makeovers suggest to us that our appearance must be improved, which can lead us to feel worse about ourselves. This idea best relates to:

social comparison.

A “significant other” is best defined as

a person who has affected one’s self-concept.

The process whereby the self-concept develops due to the way we believe others see us is called

reflected appraisal.

Nonverbal behaviors play a big role in managing impressions.

True

In many cases a self-concept is based on data which may have been true at one time, but are now obsolete.

True

The face you try to show to others is called the perceived self.

False

The self-concept is a product of the positive and negative messages you have received throughout your life.

True

Research indicates that mediated communication offers advantages for identity management.

True

Which of the following does not characterize identity management?

Identity management is always deliberate.

Jill still thinks of herself as a struggling student although as a college student her GPA is a 3.5. This is an example of

cognitive conservatism.

The story in your text about six men from Indostan illustrates

different interpretations depending on point of view.

Curt made a poor first impression on Carol as he first arrived, so throughout their evening date, despite his pleasant behavior, Carol continued to see him in an unfavorable light due to

the halo effect.

Being able to pick out your sister’s comments from a babble of voices at a party illustrates the organizational principle of

figure-ground organization.

Laura knows her friend Mary Ellen is going through a difficult time so she doesn’t mind that Mary Ellen is particularly quiet at dinner. This is an example of what stage in the perception process?

interpretation.

A shared relational narrative is the reason that some couples say they are happily married when the facts would indicate otherwise.

True

There is little difference between the terms sex and gender; they can be used interchangeably.

False

Perception checking can be a useful tool when you don’t want to embarrass or directly threaten another person.

True

The process whereby people influence each other’s perceptions and attempt to achieve a shared perspective is called

negotiation.

John is in the market for a new car and hopes to buy a Toyota Scion. It seems everywhere he goes lately he sees a Scion on the road. What does this exemplify in the process of selecting stimuli?

Motives

Selection is an objective process.

True

Punctuation is the process of organizing a series of events to determine causes and effects.

True

Position Four in the Pillow Method takes the perspective that the original issue should still be seen as very important.

False

Donna complains to Jim that the volume on the TV is too loud; Jim claims he can’t hear the TV if he turns it down. What type of perceptual influence does this example illustrate?

physiological

What’s missing from this perception check? “When you didn’t do the grocery shopping today like you usually do, I figured you weren’t feeling good or were mad at me.”

It doesn’t request clarification.

How could you improve this perception-checking statement? “When you gave me an F on my essay, I figured you hated me. Right?”

Give another interpretation.

The Pillow Method is designed to

gain insight into another’s viewpoint.

In perceiving others, we usually blame their problems on their personal qualities rather than on factors outside them.

True

The steps in the perception process are

selection, organization, interpretation.

What’s missing from this perception check? “When I saw you having lunch with Emily, I figured you liked her more than me. What’s going on?”

It has only one interpretation.

All of the following are schemes by which we classify people except

beliefs.

Your text says we don’t express our emotions very well or very frequently because

of social rules and roles.

An empty feeling in the pit of your stomach, tense muscles, and headaches are examples of the emotional component labeled

physiological factors.

Sarah’s self-esteem has been shattered since she lost her job four months ago. Reappraising the event as an opportunity to find a new career can help her alter the debilitating emotion that prevents her from effective functioning.

True

Social isolation and depression are problems that can result from the inability to constructively talk about emotions.

True

People who subscribe to the fallacy of perfection believe

a worthwhile communicator should be able to handle any situation with complete confidence and skill.

Social scientists generally agree that there are four components to the phenomena we label as “feelings.” They are:

When you believe that satisfaction in life is determined by forces beyond your control, you are falling for the fallacy of

helplessness.

It is important to express all your emotions to all the important people in your life as soon as you experience those emotions.

False

Subscribing to the fallacy of catastrophic expectations can lead to

self-fulfilling prophecies.

Historically, people were discouraged from expressing the level of anger that is currently tolerated by contemporary society.

False

Research described in this chapter found that when subjects were coached to move their facial muscles in ways that appeared afraid, angry, disgusted, amused, sad, etc., the subjects responded

as if they themselves were having these feelings.

Each of the following is an example of an emotionally counterfeit statement except

I’m bored and I want to go to a show.

When you believe that others cause your emotions rather than your own self-talk, you are falling for the fallacy of

causation.

“You never listen to me!” is an example of subscribing to the fallacy of

overgeneralization.

Gene is in a great mood when he calls Laura. However, she is in a funk from a stressful day at work. After a brief chat Gene hangs up the phone feeling discouraged. This is an example of

emotional contagion.

Which of the following is an example of the fallacy of causation?

“I really don’t like her book but I don’t want to hurt her feelings.” and “Even though I’m really busy today, I’d better visit my parents or they’ll be upset.” and “Bruce is making me crazy with his excuses.”

According to your text, the first step in minimizing your debilitative emotions is to

monitor your emotional reactions.

“My roommate ought to be more understanding.” This quote is an example of the fallacy of

shoulds.

“I feel like quitting school” is an example of

an emotionally counterfeit statement.

It rarely matters what channel to use when expressing an emotion (phone, e-mail, etc.) as long as you express yourself clearly and honestly.

False

Turning words into numbers helps make them more concrete and specific.

True

Studies show that people tend to negatively judge other people who have unusual names or unusual spellings of common names.

True

______ can be used in the workplace to promote harmony, save face and make points that can’t be expressed overtly.

Strategically ambiguous speech

You think Erin is “arrogant.” Your friend thinks she has a lot of “self-confidence.” An argument over who is right would revolve around

emotive language.

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is the best known declaration of

linguistic relativism.

If I say “here the drink bring,” I have violated a(n) ________ rule of our language.

syntactic

Which of the following statements is a fact?

“I heard you tell Tim you weren’t interested.”

In cultures that stress formality in language,

language use defines social position.

Statements that basically cancel the thought that precedes them are

“but” statements.

High-level abstractions can be useful as verbal shorthand between two people who know each other well.

True

Language can shape our perceptions of the world.

True

Convergent speech patterns

demonstrate affiliation with one another.

“We” language

may accomplish the goals of “I” language and sound less egotistical and should be avoided when expressing personal feelings and thoughts and can signal closeness and cohesiveness with others and can offend another person in some circumstances.

Men and women report using language for different purposes.

True

All of the following statements about gender and language are true except:

Women interrupt men more in mixed-sex conversations.

Which of the following is a way to avoid the abstraction in the statement “I’ve got to be a better student”?